FOCUS ON GUIDED URBAN TRANSPORT. MINITRAM IN SHEFFIELD: A CONSULTANT'S VIEW

An outline is given of the minitram demonstration project proposed for Sheffield by Robert Matthew, Johnson-Marshall and Partners, in consultation with TRRL' The aim is to test minitram in public use, and in particular to answer questions related to public acceptance, vandalism and reliability. After giving consideration to hardware, minitram vehicle dimensions, guideways and stations, the author indicates that: (1) the elimination of drivers by automation necessitates the use of new skills in the control room, and thus reduces the expected savings in costs; (2) the location of guideways close to buildings brings about problems of visual intrusion; and (3) if minitram is to be comparable with buses, stations have to be closely spaced and are hence fairly expensive to build. It is concluded that minitram might be suitable for some cities at present considering the introduction of rail rapid transit systems, but that only a public demonstration will reveal its true potential. /TRRL/

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/00410683
• Corporate Authors:

  Printerhall Limited

  29 Newmart Street
  London W1P 3PE,   England 
• Authors:
  • Bordass, W
• Publication Date: 1975-4

Language

• English

Media Info

• Features: Figures; Photos;
• Pagination: p. 172-174
• Serial:
  • Traffic Engineering & Control
  • Volume: 16
  • Issue Number: 4
  • Publisher: Hemming Group, Limited
  • ISSN: 0041-0683
  • Serial URL: http://www.tecmagazine.com/

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Attitudes; Automated guideway transit; Automated vehicle control; Bus stops; Construction; Costs; Future; High occupancy vehicle lanes; Innovation; Intelligent transportation systems; Personal rapid transit; Public transit; Right of way (Traffic); Transportation modes; Trolley cars; Urban areas; Urban transportation; Vandalism; Vehicle spacing; Visibility
• Uncontrolled Terms: Guided vehicles
• Geographic Terms: United Kingdom
• Old TRIS Terms: Advanced systems; Automated guideway systems; Future concepts
• ITRD Terms: 3655: Construction; 224: Cost; 1092: Freight terminal; 1152: Future transport mode; 744: Public transport; 8119: United Kingdom; 313: Urban area; 694: Vehicle spacing; 6783: Visibility
• Subject Areas: Construction; Finance; Highways; Operations and Traffic Management; Planning and Forecasting; Public Transportation; Railroads; I72: Traffic and Transport Planning;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00129974
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: Transport and Road Research Laboratory (TRRL)
• Files: ITRD, TRIS
• Created Date: Apr 7 1981 12:00AM